The ships, the
men, and the implements, everything, changed into stone, which today may
be seen in these caves.
NOTE. - In the neighbourhood of Kandangan, a small town northward from
Bandjermasin, are two mountains, one called gunong batu laki: the mountain
of the stone man, the other gunong batu bini: the mountain of the stone
wife. They contain large caves with stalactite formations which resemble
human beings, ships, chairs, etc. The natives here visualise a drama
enacted in the long gone-by, as related.
The Ex-Sultan of Pasir, a Malay then interned by the government in
Bandjermasin, who was present when this story was told to me by a
Mohammedan Kahayan, maintained that it is Dayak and said that it is also
known in Pasir (on the east coast). Although the fact that the scene is
laid in a region at present strongly Malay does not necessarily give a
clew to the origin of the tale, still its contents are not such as to
favour a Dayak source.
CONCLUSION
In closing this account of my investigations in Borneo it seems
appropriate to comment briefly regarding the capabilities and future
prospects of the tribes in Dutch Borneo comprised under the popular term
Dayaks. We have seen that these natives are still inclined to the
revolting habit of taking heads.
